Hunting Stands Minneapolis MN

This page provides useful content and local businesses that can help with your search for Hunting Stands. You will find helpful, informative articles about Hunting Stands, including "Tree Stand Safety" and "Out of Sight, Out of Mind: Choosing and Using Blinds and Stands". You will also find local businesses that provide the products or services that you are looking for. Please scroll down to find the local resources in Minneapolis, MN that will answer all of your questions about Hunting Stands.

Out of Sight, Out of Mind: Choosing and Using Blinds and Stands

Blinds and tree stands are all the rage with today's hunter. Used for almost all big game species, ground blinds and tree stands, not to mention freestanding hides are huge on the deer hunting scene. These portable structures are the cats meow. All sorts of blinds allow us to essentially vanish inside a tent or box-like structure. Stands allow us to hunt at an elevation less easily recognized by game.

Ground blinds are becoming very popular. Manufacturers catering to the discerning hunter offer a bevy of different designs. Most are the pop-up portable style, but some are so elaborate that they take some doing to get them in place. Today's blinds are camouflaged to allow the hunter to virtually disappear. Some are even constructed of scent-elimination materials thereby masking human odor.

Likewise, more of us are taking to the trees than every before. Why? Simple - tree stand hunting works. More deer are harvested each year from stands than by any other method. A well-placed stand allows the hunter to avoid a deer's direct field of vision while also using thermals to carry scent away from the immediate area. Commercial stand manufacturers have capitalized on our propensity to climb trees, acknowledging the fact that stand hunting is by far the most effective way to outsmart and ambush unsuspecting game. Knowing when, where and how to situate a tree stand can literally make or break a hunt. Through trial and error, I've learned some significant 'dos' and 'don'ts' when it comes to stand placement. And let me tell you, I've experienced the best and worst of stand hunting. I've been lucky enough to take exceptional trophy class animals with little time at all invested on stand, but I've also invested hundreds of hours perched high up in a tree with nothing to show for my efforts but a sore rear end.

Regardless of whether you use a gun or a bow, as a ground blind or stand hunter you quickly learn to consider seasonal timing and the lay of the land. The biggest challenge most of us face is limited time and pressure from other hunters, so we do everything we can to place our stands in an area with the greatest chances of encountering game. This is the "odds factor". In simple terms, whenever you explore new territory or even the lad you hunt on a regular basis, do everything you can to tip the odds in your favor. Consider trail intersections, ridges, natural movement corridors, funnels, and sometimes field edges. As you scour the area, make mental and literal notes on topographic maps to identify which spots might be high, medium, or low odds locations for blinds or stands.

Blind Options Every now and again I get creative and make a blind out of natural cover. I find an ideal location, cut the necessary trees and branches and craft a natural ground blind. It's usually no more than three feet or so in height and can often accommodate a couple hunters. I generally make it big enough to put a folding chair inside. On the upside, I like natural grou...

Tree Stand Safety

Every year countless hunters fall victim to tree stand accidents. Fall being the operative word, using tree stands can be risky business. Unfortunate but true, no one plans to go airborne, but it happens. I know several individuals myself who have suffered injuries while putting up, sitting in, or taking down stands. The good news is that commercial tree stands have evolved plenty over the past couple decades. Furthermore, by taking a few extra precautions we can avoid, or at very least minimize, the potential for tree stand mishaps.

With each passing season, I become more acutely aware of the risks associated with hunting from the trees. Having recently reached the middle age of 40, my reflexes aren't what they once were. I put up and take down roughly 30 stands each fall and I've come realize that I'm not as comfortable doing this as I once was. I like to believe I'm in excellent physical condition, but regardless of how fit one is, there are certain realities associated with age. To be blunt, the old muscles, joints, and reflexes don't work like they once did. Climbing trees, screwing in steps, hauling ladders, carrying stands, and all things tree stand-related affirm this. In turn, I don't feel as safe as I once did. I've hunted from portable stands for over two decades. During that time, I've had one fall and several close calls. Fortunately none resulted in injury but I'm reminded of the potential dangers each time I climb into a stand. On the flipside, I've learned to take precautions to offset the risks. From choosing a safe tree, to climbing and mounting the stand, and wearing safety equipment - all considerations play a role in helping me stay safe in the tree.

Extreme caution should be exercised while climbing, mounting, sitting, and removing tree stands.

Choose a Safe Tree Choosing the right tree in the good location can determine whether or not you'll eventually be in position for a shot opportunity. The type and size of the tree will have some bearing on how safe it is. Although seemingly obvious, always use bigger diameter live trees that are as straight as possible. Alberta's topography is diverse. Different locales offer different tree options. Whenever possible select a tree with at least a 12-inch diameter. In my opinion, big healthy spruce or pine trees with a trunk diameter of at least that, at a height of 16 feet are most ideal. Coniferous trees usually have lots of branches and that helps to add a safety buffer between you and the ground should you slip or fall. That said we all know that the world isn't perfect and those "ideal" trees in the best locations are few and far between. Poplar trees can work as long as they're big and healthy.

I once put a stand in a young spruce tree at a bear bait site. Climbing as high as possible, I could only get to about 12 feet. At that height, there was scarcely more than 10 inches of diameter to attach the stand. In my defense, that was 18 years ago, I was younger and more w...